President Xi Jinping has extended his greetings to the opening of the Eco Forum Global Annual Conference Guiyang 2018, which opened on Saturday in the capital of southwestern China's Gui-zhou province.

"Ecological conservation concerns the future of the mankind, and it's the common goal of all nations to build a green home," Xi said in a congratulatory letter to the forum.

"China highly values ecological and environmental protection," the president said. "Guided by the conviction that clear waters and lush mountains are invaluable assets, the country advocates harmonious co-existence between humans and nature, and sticks to the path of green and sustainable development."

Xi said he believed that the annual conference - this year themed "Embracing a new era of eco-civilization: green development with high priority to ecology" - would help all parties strengthen consensus and cooperation for the development of global ecological civilization.

"China is ready to work with the international community to realize the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and build a clean, beautiful world," Xi said in his letter.

This year's conference gathered more than 2,400 participants, including international guests from over 30 countries and regions and involving almost all the top international organizations specialized in environment protection and green development.

The three-day conference includes seven summits, 10 themed forums, five international workshops and international consul--tation sessions, as well as some featured activities. Besides inviting international stake-holders, the eco forum has made international exchange and cooperation key parts of its agenda.

The Sino-Swiss Dialogue, held annually since 2014, brought together guests from both countries for in-depth conversations in fields like technological in-novation.

"For a long time, Switzerland has paid attention to the relationship between development and environment, and found a successful path of green development for an inland mountainous country like itself. Guizhou should learn from its experience," said Lu Yongzheng, vice-governor of Guizhou.

Lu said the dialogue is meaningful not only in exchanging experiences and concepts, but in offering an opportunity to strengthen mutual cooperation between them.